San Diego Chargers vs. The Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field. Marcus Gilchrist leaves the field in the second half shaken up on a collision.
— Sean M. Haffey / Photo Sean M. Haffey UT San Diego.

Even as Eric Weddle and the rest of Chargers were disappointed in losing to the Denver Broncos in the Divisional Round of the playoffs, their finish gives them hope for a new beginning.
— Sean M. Haffey / Photo Sean M. Haffey UT San Diego.

Wright said that had someone told him before the game that San Diego would hold Denver to 24 points, he would have been happy. He praised Peyton Manning as the best quarterback to ever play the game while noting the potency of that entire Broncos offense, which set NFL records for points and yards in a season.

But there were also moments that could haunt him and his fellow teammates until the next time they step on the field.

One of those moments involved Wright himself. On the first drive of the game, Manning threw an ill-advised pass that flew straight into Wright's hands. But he couldn't hang on, and the Broncos scored their first seven points six plays later.

At the time, the missed opportunity seemed like something that could have snowballed into disaster. But the Chargers' defense recovered. It held Denver to 14 first-half points, and seized some potential momentum when Donald Butler intercepted Manning with 35 seconds left in the second-quarter.

From a pure statistical standpoint, the Bolts were playing the Broncos as tough as anybody in the league. But from a mental standpoint, there were times that the Chargers appeared fresh out of training camp.

Before Sunday, San Diego had three neutral-zone-infraction penalties called against them all year. Sunday, they had five.

All day long, Manning's triple counts and dummy calls had the Chargers jumping offsides and turning first and 10s into first and 5s.

"Unacceptable," said Chargers safety Eric Weddle."

"You're giving a very good quarterback a lot of freebies," added Chargers coach Mike McCoy.

And on the Bronco's last drive of the game, that quarterback found tight end Julius Thomas on a third and 17, exploiting a Chargers' miscommunication and getting a crucial first down.

So yes, there was a lot of bad on Sunday. But there was also a lot of good.

For the second straight playoff game, the Chargers exceeded expectations and showed some promise for the future. Ten points against the Bengals, and 24 against the Broncos? That's impressive.

Unfortunately, nobody is thinking about that now.

"It's hard to look back and think about the good," Weddle said. "Right now, our dreams are shattered."